Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1887-10-17
"REMINISCENCES OF A CRIME.
ACauSe Cslebre Of ~Thirty-fvs Years Ago Re-
called by Recent Events.
STORY OF A MIDNIGHT "GHOST.'
Interesting Reading for People in the Vicinity
Of New Martinsville.
From the Sunday Regisfar

sb0ut ten days ago, has had the effect OF
reyiving, in a very decided manner, local
interest in a most horrible and unprovoked
murder, which, some t~hirty-ive years ago,
produced a tremendous sensation AL along
the upper Ohio Valley, from Wine, ling 20
Parkersburg, a distance of nearly one hun
dred miles. There ia very good grounds
for the belief that upon his death-bed,
Mercer confessed TO having committed the
murder to which reference has above been
made, and in So doing he has but verified
n suspicion which has filled the minds of
those who were at all conversant with the
facts of the tragedy. The crime was com
mitted in Wetzel county, and the victim
was John Gamble, a prosperous citizen,
who resided with his family a few miles
from the town of New Martinsville, then
as now the county seat. Gamble was of a
speculative turn of mind, and frequently
visited New M~artinsyille to dispose of live
stock, or whatever else he had 10 realize
upon. At such times, after finding q
customer, Gamble would have several hun
dred dollars in his possession, and there
were frequent predictions, from the care
less manner in which he displayed his
money when under the influence of liquor,
that some day there would be = tragedy
and that he would be the victim. This
prediction was realized, and a most peculiar
and mysterious murder il was. The crime
created the utmost horror among the PEG
pie living along the river, and a sensation
of unparalleled dimensions ensued, the eX-
citement being intensified by the peculiar
observation-disclosures connected whit they
leading up to the arrest OF Mercer, his trial
and acquittal, and including the social
ostracism to which he was ever afterwards
subjected. The history ofthis cause crLebrc,
as it is now reCollecteG by some OF the
actors in it, is as follows:
One day late in the summer of 1858,
Gamble, who lived on the river shore al
most directly opposite the little town Of
Sardia, came up to New Martinsville with
a skin, intending to buy some cider bar
rels, and then 90 10 COchrausyllle and pay
u debt. He had about 5000 in his
possession. Mercer was in town That
day, and the two men, being well known
10 each other, soon got Ia drinking to-
getLer. Towards dark, Gamble concluded
that he would start for home, and ~
MERGERS route also lay along the river for
a mile or 40, before he turned Off to 20 up
through the hills, he told Gamble he would
accompany him thus far III his journey.
The two men took one more drink together,
and then started Off down the river in the
skin, Gamble being more under the intiu-
emce OF liquor than his companion. Gamble
was never seen alive afterwards. lie not ar
irving at his home that night, his family
and friends the next day caused an ex-
tended search TO be made, but all TO no
purpose. No trace of the missing maa
could he found. Mercer was questioned,
but he insisted that he lett his companion
al the point their paths diveIged, and that
he had no knowledge whatever of his tate.
Mercer said that when he met the missing
man in town, Gamble had told him about
some OF lia financial transactions. One Of
these rellted to a note, which a farmer
named Whiteman had given him as evil
dence Of debt. Mercer said he told Gam
bic that Whiteman had traded q note of
this description to HIM, and this led to a
little misunderstanding between the two.
To settle their differences, they concluded
to go and see Whiteman, and when they
left town in the skilf it was with the in
tentiOn Of stopping about a mile down the
river, where q road led TO Whiteman's
house. After the visit to Whiteman, IN
the course of which the note transaction
was cleared up, and just ~ the two men
again reached the river shore where
they had LEFT their boat, they We're
Joined Nv two hired men who worked for a
farmer named John Travis. Mercer aQd
Gamble told these men about the trouble
they had had about the note, and then all
separated, the two young men going up
the river towards New Martinsvilie, Gam
BILE embarking alone in his boat for home,
while Mercer claimed to have started to
20 on foot TO his own farm.
Thus matters rested until the second
day after the murder, when the skifG be-
lungingto the missing man was found stuck
against the end of raft, about Il mile
down the river from the place where the
conference of the night before had been
held, and in it was a piece Of 4 shirt
sleeve worn by Gamble. There was no
trace Of the body, however, and thus
! matters rested until the following spring,
when the body of the missing map WAS
found lodged against some rocks, in the
channel of the river, twenty miles or more
| below the point where Mercer claimed Ia
have left him. No one could account Tor
his death, and it was urged by some
that being intoxicated, he had simply
| fallen ont OF the skill, and that
death by drowning had resulted,
Others, however, insisted that n crime had
been committed, basing their claim mainly
upon the fact that the remains were
partially disrobed and had been stripped
of everything of value.
Thus matters went on for two or three
months, when events of a rather unusual
and sensational nature t%anspired. After
the custom of the county, there was a great
corn-husking bee given, about the first Of
! NOVEMBER, at INC bdlu VI 1Om lOubE' q
few miles from New Martinsville, and
the boys and girls from all the sur
rounding farms were there, together
with not 4 few of older years. Among
others, n crowd of fifteen or twenty young
men went ont from New Martinsville, and
after a night spent in mingled work, kiss
| ing and cider drinking, the town boys
started to return home. The party kept
together until they came to the brow o.
the Immense hill which bounds the town
ON the east, where q halt was called. The
hillside was very steep, and al there wert
two two paths leading down to the riSel
bottom, one direct but difficult anC
dangerous, and the other, while a LITTLE
longer, comparatively easy, adispute aros'
as to which should be- taken. The disput,
waxcd warm, and finally the part,
separated into two rival factions, eacl
agreeing to take one of the routes, and
wager was made, conditioned that th,
party last arriving on the Court Hous
Square should buy a gallon of whisky. Tn,
party which took the longer but less pre-
cipitous route came ont on the river bot
tom about a mile below the town, and ins